|  European satellites launched to eye Earth's magnetic field  | The European Space Agency on Friday launched three satellites it hopes will help understand why the magnetic field that makes human life possible on Earth appears to be weakening. The satellites, comprising ESA's Swarm project, were launched from Russia's Plesetsk Cosmodrome on a Rockot vehicle at 7.02 a.m. EST and were placed in near-polar orbit at an altitude of 490 kilometers (304 miles) about 91 minutes later. Data that Swarm is due to collect for the next four years will help improve scientists' relatively blurry understanding of the magnetic field that shields life on Earth from deadly solar radiation and helps some animals migrate. It has happened before - the geological record suggests the magnetic field has reversed every 250,000 years, meaning that, with the last event 800,000 years ago, another would seem to be overdue.
| Read More » ADHD on the Rise Among Children, New Study Says The percentage of U.S. children with of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has risen dramatically in recent years, new research suggests. In 2011, 6.4 million children between ages 4 and 17 were diagnosed with the disorder, 2 million more than were diagnosed in 2003. More than two-thirds of children with ADHD were prescribed medication for the disorder, according to the study, published online Nov. 19 in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. "Early treatment can be a tremendous help to children whose behavior, performance and relationships are being negatively impacted by ADHD," said study researcher Susanna Visser, an epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in a statement. Read More » Sugar-Sweetened Drinks May Boost Women's Uterine Cancer Risk  | Postmenopausal women who drink beverages with added sugar may be more likely to develop cancer of the endometrium, which is the lining of the uterus, according to a new study. Researchers found the more sugar-sweetened beverages the women in their study drank, the higher their risk for developing estrogen-dependent endometrial cancer. And women who consumed the highest intake of sugar-sweetened beverages, about 60 servings a week, had a 78 percent increased risk for the cancer, compared with women who didn't drink sugar-sweetened beverages. The findings suggest that consuming drinks with added sugar "may be a risk factor for type I endometrial cancer regardless of other lifestyle factors," the researchers wrote in their study. Endometrial cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women, and eighth most common cause of cancer death among women in the United States.
| Read More » Momentum Builds for Obama's Brain Initiative  | SAN DIEGO — A new initiative to understand the human brain, announced by President Barack Obama earlier this year, has left people wondering exactly what its goals will be. The BRAIN Initiative (short for Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies) is a collaborative effort between government agencies, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and private funding organizations. Obama has called the BRAIN Initiative "the next great American project," and indeed, that was the mood among the panel members here.
| Read More » Evolution battle stirs as Texas delays new biology text By Jim Forsyth SAN ANTONIO, Texas (Reuters) - Social conservatives on the Texas State Board of Education have delayed approval of a high school biology textbook, pending a review by experts, citing concerns about the book's lessons on evolution. In the latest episode of a lengthy battle by evangelicals in Texas to insert Christian and Biblical teachings into public school textbooks, the board on Thursday blocked the book's approval. A volunteer reviewer concluded that the assertions in "Pearson Biology," which include lessons on natural selection and the Earth's cooling process, are "errors" that need to be corrected by publisher Pearson Education, one of the nation's largest producers of school textbooks, board members said. "Publishers of several other books agreed to make the changes we pointed out," said David Bradley, a leader of the social conservatives on the board, referring to earlier efforts to change other science texts. Read More » Fred Kavli, science research supporter, dies at 86 SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (AP) — Fred Kavli, who launched a foundation to support science research and award prizes of $1 million to scientists, has died. He was 86. Read More » New US Space Transportation Policy Stresses Private Spacecraft, Heavy-Lift Rocket  | The Obama administration has outlined its strategy for maintaining what it describes as the United States' global leadership role in spaceflight and exploration. The White House's new national space transportation policy, released Thursday (Nov. 21), reinforces several previously stated administration priorities. It calls on federal agencies to continue supporting the development of private American spaceships to carry astronauts to and from low-Earth orbit, for example, and directs NASA to keep working on a heavy-lift rocket to send people much farther afield. This plan makes a lot of sense for NASA, allowing the agency to put its limited financial resources to the best possible use, NASA chief Charles Bolden said.
| Read More » Stargazer Snaps Stunning Milky Way Photo of Mount Rainier (Image)  | The brilliant band of the Milky Way dazzles over Mount Rainier National Park in an amazing new image. Paula Cobleigh captured this photo on Oct. 25 while visiting Mount Rainier National Park in Washington. Mount Rainier is an active volcano, ascending to 14,410 feet above sea level (4,392 meters).
| Read More » How Bright Will Comet ISON Get? Only Time Will Tell  | The potentially dazzling Comet ISON is currently visible to the unaided eye — a milestone for the comet's much-anticipated pass through the inner solar system — but its future all depends in how it reacts to a close Thanksgiving encounter with the sun, comet observers say. You can follow the latest Comet ISON news, photos and video on SPACE.com.
| Read More » NASA Moon Dust Probe Begins Lunar Science Mission  | NASA's newest lunar probe has officially begun its mission to study the moon's tenuous atmosphere like never before, as well as track how dust moves across the lunar sky.
| Read More » Incredible Tech: How to Engineer Life in the Lab  | Editor's Note: In this weekly series, LiveScience explores how technology drives scientific exploration and discovery. The year was 2003, the place MIT. A handful of engineers, computer scientists and a molecular biologist convened, intent on answering a simple question: What if biology were faster, cheaper and more predictable to engineer? The molecular biologist was Pamela Silver, of Harvard Medical School.
| Read More » Roman Emperor Hadrian's Villa Brought to Life with Gaming Software  | In ruins today, Hadrian's Villa can only hint at its second-century glory. But a new digital archaeology project promises to transport computer users to the Roman emperor's opulent compound as it might have been nearly 2,000 years ago. Five years in the making, the Digital Hadrian's Villa Project brings to life all 250 acres (101 hectares) of the estate in Tivoli, Italy, through 3D reconstructions and gaming software. The project launched Friday (Nov. 22), and the first of its 20 interactive Web players should be publicly available sometime before Thanksgiving (Nov. 28), said the project's leader Bernie Frischer of Indiana University.
| Read More » Track Your Trackers: New Tools Organize All Your Data "A single tracker is only ever going to give you a one-dimensional view of your life," said Josh Sharp, co-founder of Exist, a company that aims to launch one such meta-tracker early next year. Follow Rachael Rettner @RachaelRettner. Read More » | |
